Jen Liou

Jen Liou, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Physiology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. She is the Principal Investigator of the Liou Lab, which focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms of organelle communication in mammalian cells, particularly through ER-PM junctions. Her work has significantly advanced the understanding of calcium signaling and phosphoinositide metabolism in immune cells and other physiological contexts.

• Education: Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), under Dr. Arthur Weiss; postdoctoral training at Stanford University under Dr. Tobias Meyer.

Research Interests

Dr. Liou's research centers on:

• ER-PM junctions and their role in organelle communication
• Mechanisms of store-operated calcium entry (SOCE) and STIM1/2 activation
• Phosphoinositide dynamics in T cell signaling and survival
• Systems biology and quantitative live-cell imaging approaches
• Feedback regulation of calcium signaling via E-Syt1 and Nir2
• Structural analyses of signaling protein localization

Notable Contributions

Dr. Liou's work includes:

• Identification of STIM1/2 as calcium sensors in ER-PM junctions
• Development of an siRNA library targeting 2,304 human signaling proteins
• Elucidation of Nir2/Nir3 proteins in phosphoinositide homeostasis
• Characterization of lysosomal LAMP proteins in pH regulation
• Insights into cortical actin's role in ER-PM junction organization

Her research has been featured in journals such as Nature Cell Biology, Nature Immunology, and Molecular Cell, with implications for immune disorders and cellular physiology.

Labs & Collaborations

The Liou Lab collaborates extensively, including contributions to the Alliance for Cellular Signaling, and continues to explore the structural and functional dynamics of ER-PM junctions using interdisciplinary approaches.